ENEMY OF THE CROSS

Gen 15; Psalm 27 The Lord is my light and my salvation; Philippians 3:17-4:1; Luke 9:28-36

Just a few thoughts in regard to the readings of today.

We encounter these words from St Paul in today's second reading: "For many, as I have often told you and now tell you even in tears, conduct themselves as enemies of the cross of Christ.  Their end is destruction.  Their God is their stomach; their glory is in their shame.  Their minds are occupied with earthly things."

Could you imagine anything more tragic than those words spoken by St Paul in regards to a group of people as those who conduct themselves as enemies of the cross.

What about us?  Are we enemies of the cross?  How often like the folks of St Paul's time have we indulged ourselves with earthly things and have lost sight of the things that matter most?  How often have we allowed the stuff of earth to compete with our allegiance we owe to God the giver of all things?

Lent is an opportunity to supercharge our allegiance to God above all.

But I think the great  tragedy is that we seldom ponder the cross.  When is the last time we spent time looking at the cross and dialoguing with Christ who is on it?

If we think not of the cross often then we forget and in forgetting we allow ourselves to be persuade by the passing things of earth.

St John Vianney often said that we must approach the foot of the cross daily and there we discover what God has done for us and we learn what we ought to do for him.

During the season of Lent usually most churches offer the devotional of The way of the cross in which folks gather together and meditate on the 14 stations of the Jesus making his way to Calvary.

This is a good opportunity to ponder a new the cross of Christ in such a manner that we remember and allow the memory to supercharge our love.  It is in the cross of Christ that we come to see what it looks like to Love God above all  with all our heart, mind, and strength and to love our neighbor as ourselves.

John of the cross said that in giving of his Son, God our Father spoke every word at once and he has nothing else to say.  We make the way of the cross to heart that word a new and to let it dwell richly in our hearts so from it our interior life can be bolstered and such animate our external activity daily.

In this we become lovers of the cross not its enemy.